How can I install a local plugin in etherpad?

[petesantos]

I am new to Etherpad and would like to write a plugin, but want to start locally. I am on a mac and would prefer not to use docker.
I cannot seem to get Etherpad to pick up my local plugin.

I have tried adding it to local_plugins and copying it to node_modules.

I am at a loss on how to begin development of a plugin. Any help would be appreciated

[ferrlen]

This is an old post, but for anyone who is still looking for an answer:

you must include in the local_plugins folder the folder to your plugin. Your plugin folder should follow the folder structure laid out here: https://docs.etherpad.org/plugins.html

After that, if you're using Docker, you should include a build arg with your plugin name (not path), either following the instructions directly in the Dockerfile provided by Etherpad or by specifying it in docker-compose.yml (services: app: build: args: ETHERPAD_LOCAL_PLUGINS="ep_your_plugin_name").

If you're not using Docker, the Dockerfile essentially just runs pnpm install -w ep_yourplugin "local_plugins/ep_yourplugin/". So, just run it to install your plugin. Below is the installLocalPlugins.sh script invoked by the Dockerfile:

#!/bin/bash
set -euo pipefail
IFS=$'\n\t'

trim() {
    local var="$*"
    # remove leading whitespace characters
    var="${var#"${var%%[![:space:]]*}"}"
    # remove trailing whitespace characters
    var="${var%"${var##*[![:space:]]}"}"
    printf '%s' "$var"
}

# Move to the Etherpad base directory.
MY_DIR=$(cd "${0%/*}" && pwd -P) || exit 1
cd "${MY_DIR}/.." || exit 1

# Source constants and useful functions
. bin/functions.sh

PNPM_OPTIONS=
if [ ! -z "${NODE_ENV-}"  ]; then
  if [ "$NODE_ENV" == 'production' ]; then
    PNPM_OPTIONS='--prod'
  fi
fi

if [ ! -z "${ETHERPAD_LOCAL_PLUGINS_ENV-}"  ]; then
  if [ "$ETHERPAD_LOCAL_PLUGINS_ENV" == 'production' ]; then
    PNPM_OPTIONS='--prod'
  elif [ "$ETHERPAD_LOCAL_PLUGINS_ENV" == 'development' ]; then
    PNPM_OPTIONS='-D'
  fi
fi

if [ ! -z "${ETHERPAD_LOCAL_PLUGINS}" ]; then
  readarray -d ' ' plugins <<< "${ETHERPAD_LOCAL_PLUGINS}"
  for plugin in "${plugins[@]}"; do
    plugin=$(trim "$plugin")
    if [ -d "local_plugins/${plugin}" ]; then
      echo "Installing plugin: '${plugin}'"
      pnpm install -w ${PNPM_OPTIONS:-} "local_plugins/${plugin}/"
    else
      ( echo "Error. Directory 'local_plugins/${plugin}' for local plugin " \
             "'${plugin}' missing" >&2 )
      exit 1
    fi
  done
else
  echo 'No local plugings to install.'
fi